David MacKenzie Ogilvy, known as “The Father of Advertising” said it well, "Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark!".

For those of you who don’t know me personally, I’ll tell you a secret: I’ve always looked out of rose colored glasses, and so life for me, has always been a chance to aim out of the ballpark and dream BIG!

Because of the encouragement of so many across the country, I decided to take the plunge and make a cooking video for the Food Network, television executives, producers and public relations companies. I’m shooting for the stars!

What inspires me? Well, my grandmother, Isabel, who immigrated to the United States from Portugal, could not read or write, therefore none of her incredible recipes were ever written down, but she took the time to cook with me daily. My grandmother’s life has always been an inspiration to me and so I wrote a cookbook that is dedicated to my grandmother and is written for my children. Memories from the Kitchen includes two hundred of my family recipes. Many have inquired about my cookbook and I hope to get it published someday. Until then, Cooking with Elise is my way of sharing our family recieps adn tips and stories with you. I can’t tell you how meaningful it is to have some of my grandmother’s recipes nestled within the pages of my cookbook and found on my website. And now our love of people and food will forever be written in ink. The passion once shared between my grandmother and me, has been passed onto my children and so many others. In addition to my cooking classes, this website will extend our passion of people and food to others and will encourage them to share time with their families in the kitchen. I know my grandmother would be elated! I have been fortunate enough to encourage thousands of families all around the world to get into the kitchen and cook together, because I know just how important this is.

I hold dear the vivid memories of my grandmother daily. Just this past Easter, something incredible happened. I was making the Portuguese Sweet Bread, known as Massa Sovado, that my grandmother made every year. Although my grandmother passed away almost twenty years ago, as I kneaded the bread recollections of her kneading the Massa flooded my mind. I don’t recall her telling me why she did this, but I remember her using precious fingers to indent a sign of the cross on the top of the bread before it rose. Why hadn’t I noticed the significance of this before? You see I realized that as the dough rose, the cross disappeared which not only showed her that the bread had fully risen, but this served as a reminder of Christ’s resurrection! How ’bout that? I have loved her Portuguese Sweet Bread as far back as I can remember, but I am continually reminded of the lessons she taught me even if they were not spoken. Actions truly speak louder than words!

So, get into the kitchen with your families and make memories, and don’t forget to AIM OUT OF THE BALLPARK!